The present invention relates to wheel-bearing trucks. More particularly, although not exclusively, the invention relates to a wheel-bearing truck for mounting on a skateboard. The invention might also have application with kickboards, or any vehicle that has a rigid rear transverse swing arm or hanger that is pivoted at or near its centre to enable the vehicle to roll, and at each opposed end of which there is a road wheel mounted on bearings. Such vehicles might be non-motorised or motorised. Any kind of vehicle, cycle or motorcycle having a rear truck mounted on a swing arm of some kind might also benefit from the invention. Additionally, the invention might be applicable to multi-axle suspensions for off-road vehicles.
Skateboard trucks are known to take on different configurations in order to control performance characteristics of steering, dampening, spring rate, traction, stability, and range of motion. Traditional approaches generally compromised one set of performance characteristics for another. For example, bushing based trucks can be adjusted for quick steering portability, but not both at the same time. Such design compromises are partly a function of specialised use requirements but in other cases a function of poor design and primitive manufacturing process.
If the user desires to adjust the return-to-centre bias of modern skateboard trucks, the spring force can be adjusted only by replacing return springs with springs of different spring constant. This can be a costly and time-consuming process, especially where fine tuning is desired.